ONC Consumer Campaign Pledge

ANA has joined the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services’ (HHS’) Office of the National Coordinator (ONC) for Health Information Technology’s Consumer Campaign and pledged to “engage and empower individuals to be partners in their health through information technology.” Although ANA does not directly manage or maintain consumer health data, ANA represents registered nurses as both consumers and advocates of health care services, and has the ability to educate consumers on the importance of getting access to and using their health information. With the increased availability of personal health information through computer technology, ANA supports and encourages registered nurses to access their own health information, as well as educate others how to access and use this information to improve their health.

The overall goals of ANA's pledge are:

Educate registered nurses as both consumers and as health care advocates on how to obtain access to their personal health information

Support ONC’s efforts to make it easy for consumers to use their health information

Enable authorized sharing of health data by informing consumers of the benefits as well as the ownership, security, and privacy considerations of electronic health information.

Pledge NOW

The American Nurses Association recognizes and promotes the integral role of the registered nurse to engage consumers in health-related decisions that improve the experience of care, the health of populations, and decrease costs across patient populations and healthcare settings.

I, as a registered nurse, and health care consumer pledge the following: